Two major U.S. banks — Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank — closed in March 2023. But while these shut downs came as a shock to the general public, there is some positive news for the average bank account holder: Over the last two years, banking has shifted to favor the depositor. Not only have the amount of banking fees dropped, but consumers’ interest earnings have risen dramatically — with interest rates seeing particularly notable increases in the third and fourth quarter of 2022.

It’s a mixed bag when it comes to calling a recession for the U.S. economy sometime this year. Most economists still see a recession as the U.S. Federal Reserve sends signals of more interest rate hikes to decelerate inflation.
The good news is people are working and unemployment is low. Also, consumers have continued to spend—more recently on services, but the buying of goods, in particular durable goods like big-ticket items including appliances and cars, could slow down. That would be a positive because it would help drive slower inflation.

Advice and insights from major players

The cannabis market in the United States was valued at nearly $11 billion in 2021, according to Cleveland-based Nova One Advisor, and it is expected to reach $40.5 billion by 2030. The market research company estimates that demand for weed will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 14.9% from 2022 to 2030.

“The increasing demand for cannabis is likely to propel the entry of new companies in the future, fueled by increasing awareness and acceptance regarding cannabis use for medical purposes,” Nova One Advisor noted in a June 2022 market report.

Despite being handcuffed and locked away at the Kamiti Maximum Security Prison for possessing banned books in December of 1977, he was convicted without court or trial for a year in Kenya.

Ngugi wa Thiong’o, vividly remembers writing his novel “Devil on the Cross” which was published in 1980 – on rough toilet paper – while tucked away in his cell. He didn’t want the prison guards to discover his manuscript. He later managed to smuggle out his opus from the “Kamiti Downs,” the prison’s original name.

Here are Agecroft Partners’ 14th annual predictions for the biggest trends in the hedge fund industry for 2023. These predictions are based on dialogue with more than 2,000 institutional investors located globally and hundreds of hedge fund organizations. They are also predicated upon an economic forecast of continued rising interest rates for at least the 1st half of 2023 and a moderate recession. The hedge fund industry is dynamic and both managers and investors can benefit from anticipating, and preparing for, the changes likely to occur.

Millions of Americans left their jobs in waves during the Great Resignation that began in 2021, but employees now are increasingly choosing not to resign — at least conventionally. Enter quiet quitting, a trend in the workplace power struggle where employees refuse to go above the bare minimum without additional pay.

In this latest LendingTree survey, we asked more than 2,000 U.S. consumers about their experiences with the quiet quitting movement. Here’s what we found.

Falcon Wealth Planning took flight in early 2015. Flash forward seven years and the Ontario, California financial planning/tax specialist firm is ranked among the fastest growing registered investment advisors (RIAs) in the country.

Especially, since December of 2021, Falcon Wealth Planning has been soaring. Consider: Ending 2021 with nearly a half-billion dollars in assets under management (AUM) Falcon Wealth was recognized on Citywire’s 50 Grower’s Across America list for 2021, noting it as one of the fastest-growing RIAs in the state of California.

A recession is expected in the United States starting in the fourth quarter, according to The Conference Board, but it is forecast to be brief and shallow. There are risks, however, of a global recession.
Among the megatrends highlighted by The Conference Board are the pandemic and the war in Ukraine, which continue to dominate its outlook. Others include supply chain disruptions and inflation, central banks tightening monetary policy, and the impact of the lingering pandemic and demographics on labor markets.

It's been an amazing couple of years for the mergers and acquisitions market. Despite inflation, rising interest rates, uncertainty over the economy's direction, and an ongoing war in Ukraine, the M&A market has experienced a wave of activity.

In the U.S., states began to shut down in mid-March of 2020 to prevent the spread of Covid-19. At the time, M&A market activity had dropped significantly, according to GlobalData, a U.K.-based data, and analytics firm. The number of announced M&A deals fell from 2,349 in February 2020 to 1,984 in March 2020 globally, whereas the corresponding deal value decreased from $151.2 billion to $129.9 billion.